Chapter 2

"Mrs. Vance? What are you doing out here?"

A voice suddenly spoke behind me.

I spun around in a panic and saw Ethan's assistant.

At that moment, the office door swung open, and Ethan hurried out, looking visibly flustered.

"Why didn't you come in? Why are you standing outside?"

Suppressing the storm raging in my chest, I forced a sweet smile. "I just arrived. I was about to knock when your assistant walked up."

Ethan studied my face, seemingly testing the waters. "That's a shame. You missed me talking to Carter."

"Oh? What were you talking about?" I asked with just the right amount of curiosity, though my hands were clenched into shaking fists inside my sleeves.

Ethan visibly relaxed. "Just bragging to this bachelor about how gorgeous and devoted my wife is."

Carter played along with the act. "Yeah, honestly, you two make me want to settle down."

"Alright, beat it," Ethan joked, nudging him. "My wife is here. I don't have time to entertain you."

"Look at you, ditching your buddy the second she walks in... Hey Chloe, let me know if he misbehaves. I'll make him sleep on the floor!"

They banter smoothly. Every word out of Ethan's mouth painted him as the ultimate devoted husband.

To anyone else, Ethan was the ultimate romantic hero who brought billionaire-romance dreams to life.

Too bad it was all a sick lie.

I made some polite excuses, dropped off the small cake I had bought on the way, and turned to leave.

I had to get out before my tears betrayed me.

As I stepped out of the elevator in the lobby, a girl carrying a stack of files slammed right into me. Papers scattered everywhere.

"I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry..." The girl seemed terrified.

"It's fine." I knelt to help her pick them up, and that was when several glossy photos slipped out of an envelope.

There were only two people in the photos: Ethan and a sultry, stunning woman, with the Champs-Élysées in Paris as their backdrop.

I remembered then. Ethan had gone to France on a business trip just last week.

He was gone for an entire week, and when he came back, he brought me a diamond bracelet.

It was identical to the one on the woman's wrist in the pictures.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, I have an urgent meeting..."

Seeing me freeze, the girl hastily snatched the photos from my hands and shoved them back into the folder.

"Wait," I called out.

"Don't run off so fast. You worked so hard to drop these photos right at my feet. Aren't you going to leave your contact info?"

The girl clearly hadn't expected me to call her bluff. She froze for a second before looking up.

She had a striking face that bore a faint resemblance to the woman in the photos, though they weren't the same person.

"I was trying to give you an easy way out," she sneered. "Since you don't appreciate it, let's just lay it all on the table."